OK... At the risk of taking some heat, I am going to argue that, at least in the dreadnaught models, Guild Oxnard hasn't introduced any GRAND departure in the top bracing pattern that they have used for years. As exhibit 1, here is a cropped version of the "new" bracing of a dreadnaught top posted by Ralf (Thanks for the pic, Ralf! How did you find the images you posted?):
For exhibit 2, here is a "Henkogram" showing the bracing of my 1972 Guild D-35, taken from my
bracing blog, but flipped around so that it is in the same orientation as Ralf's image):
To my eye, every brace in the "new" bracing has a counterpart in the 1972 bracing, and the braces are in roughly the same position.(I didn't measure or try to superimpose them).
Now, there are some notable differences:
First, overall, the Oxnard braces appear to my eye to be noticeably thinner than what I am used to seeing in my Westerly-built instruments. I haven't really followed the specs of the new Guilds, but know that some models are using red spruce for braces, which, being stiffer, would allow the braces to be thinner (thus less mass).
Next, the braces surrounding the sound hole, those flanking it and below the soundhole (between the sound hole and the X brace intersection), have a new, taller profile. In the Westerly models/years in which these braces were used (the was a period when the sound hole of at least some dread models was reinforced by a single plate), they were short/shallow and wide... sort of the profile of a tongue depressor (wide enough that, for a period of time in the 70s and 80s, Guild stamped the top completion date on them). In the Oxnard pattern, the braces surrounding the sound hole look taller and thinner, and the brace on the treble side and below the sound hole are heavily scalloped.
It also appears to me that the Oxnard braces are substantially more "scalloped" overall compared to what I have seen in my sampling of Westerly-era Guilds ('82 D-70, '92 D-55, two '94 DV-72s, and a '95 DV-73)... again, this might be a consequence of using red spruce for bracing: red spruce being would allow more of the brace to be removed by scalloping, without compromising function (but perhaps altering tonal charcteristics)
Finally, the Oxnard bridge plate appears substantially smaller than that in the '72 D-35 example I am showing... but my later Westerly dreads also had smaller (maple) bridge plates.
One final comment... tho' the neck block region of the dread tops isn't shown in the pics Ralf posted, from the F-55 and M-20 pics, it appears that Guild Oxnard is going back to a "popsicle"-like brace in this region of the top (called the "upper transverse brace" in the F-55 pic Ralf posted)... similar to what was found in Westerly models prior to sometime in 1974. After mid-74, the "popsicle brace" was replaced by an extension of the neck block and a pair of thin "wing" braces between the first transverse brace and the shoulders:
The Oxnard "Upper transverse brace" appears to have a rounded profile from what I can see, in contrast to the simple, flat stick I see in my '72 D-35. Can anyone with a Oxnard-made dread confirm that the neck block extension is gone?
So, after looking at the pics and thinking about them as this thread progressed, MY conclusion is that Guild Oxnard (Ren?) was continuing a progression that Guild began with the DV series built in Westerly, beginning in 1993, returning to traditional bracing patterns (with some refinements in materials and shapes) from Guild's early days. That's just my take on the matter... as always, YMMV.